Floats - Balsa & Avon floats

...'floats to beat the flow'

Using 'Balsas' & 'Avons'

"Balsas and Avons are the 'boss' floats on running water whenever conditions demand the use of weight down the line."

Balsas & Avons ...an introduction

Like Stick Floats, you use Balsa Floats and Avon Floats exclusively for 'trotting' running water; their buoyancy is concentrated towards the top and you attach them to your line top-and-bottom with Float Rubbers. But there the similarity ends.

Stick Floats

Basically have light shotting capacities - up to about 4BB. You use them mostly with small baits such as Maggots and Casters at close range (up to, say, three rod lengths out) in steady water of moderate depth - up to around 2.5m (8ft).
You usually dot them right down to register shy bites and shot them 'Shirt Button Style' with small shot (10S, 8s, 6s and 4s) to catch 'on-the-drop' as well as near the bottom.

Balsa Floats & Avon Floats,

On the other hand, typically have much heavier shotting capacities - up to several SSG - and are buoyant enough to support big baits such as Luncheon Meat as well as smaller ones like Maggots and Casters.
You generally use them to fish faster, deeper water farther out from the bank. Most of the shot is normally bulked close to the hook - to make long-distance casting easier and to get the bait quickly near the bottom and keep it there.

A range of Balsa Floats and Avon Floats for fast-flowing water.

From left to right:

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three standard Avons,
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four balsas,
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two 'Topper' Haskins balsa and crow quill Avons, and
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two standard Avons.

Balsa Floats

Though Balsa Floats are indeed usually made of thickish lengths of balsa wood, some manufacturers have brought out polystyrene and hollow plastic versions. Whatever the material, all have fat, buoyant tops that allow them to ride very fast and often turbulent water without being constantly dragged under the surface.

Because they carry a lot of shot for their size, Balsa Floats are ideal for fishing large, delicate baits such as Wasp Grub, Luncheon Meat and Bread Flake. Light floats require a vigorous cast, which makes such baits prone to flying off the hook in mid-air. With a heavy Balsa Float, however, you can cast these baits a long way with only a smooth and gentle underarm swing.

This is not to say you can't use Balsa Floats to good effect with smaller baits such as Maggots - you can. Despite their lack of sensitivity, bites with Balsa Floats are usually very bold whatever the bait, because in very fast water a fish has only a moment in which to grab the bait.

Shotting for Balsa Floats

Bunch most of the shot (SSGs, AAAs, BBS) below halfway between float and hook.

Over a clean riverbed where the water isn't turbulent you only need one or two dropper shot. Indeed, you sometimes find you can get away with bunching all the shot as close as 25cm (10in) from the hook.

Where the bottom is rocky, use several closely spaced droppers to combat the turbulence - spread them out below the bulk at intervals of about 5cm (2in), stopping around 15cm (6in) from the hook. In either case there is no need to use droppers smaller than size 6.

Float Rubbers

A longish (20mm) bottom float rubber that overhangs the end of the float eliminates a potential tangle point and allows better bait presentation and a cleaner strike. Down the line, leave a 1-2mm gap between each shot in a group to make the line hang straight.

Back shotting Avon and Balsa floats in a downstream wind

Using a 'Topper' to avoid small fish

Avon Floats

Avon Floats have slim stems below bulbous bodies, and long, slim tops. Traditionally made from cane and balsa, they are now also available with polystyrene or hollow plastic bodies and wire or plastic stems.

Their long, slim tops, meanwhile, give a degree of sensitivity and allow you to see them clearly right to the end of a very long trot.

The 'Topper' Avon Float

A variant of the standard Avon Float is the Balsa and Crow Quill Avon Float.

This superb float was developed and perfected some years ago by a south-west matchman 'Topper' Haskins for his local Bristol Avon River. He could still winning matches with it to this day.

On much of the Bristol Avon River a prevailing upstream wind makes it difficult to present a bait at the steady speed of the flow with a Waggler Float or Stick Float, because there isn't enough shot down the line with these floats.

High banks and deep water, meanwhile, make tangle-free, long-distance overhead casting very awkward.

In many ways Avon Floats bridge the gap between Stick Floats and Balsa Floats.

Their bulbous bodies give them buoyancy and, combined with their denser stems, allow you to hold them back slightly to slow down the bait.

The 'Topper' was the answer. It has a slimmer body than a standard Avon Float and a longer, slimmer top, making it that bit more sensitive. It carries a lot of shot, however, allowing easy underarm casting and effective fishing of deep, steady water.

The 'Topper' is now established as an excellent float for any river where there is steadily flowing water of more than 1.5m (5ft) deep. In fact, the deeper the water the better it seems to work.

It's the ideal float in swims where you would usually fish a Stick Float but where there are masses of small, nuisance fish near the surface and in mid-water. The bulk shot takes the bait straight down to the better fish near the bottom, but no sensitivity of bite registration is lost.

Casting Lesson:

With bulk shot down the line, you can use an overhead cast for distance work. But feather the line in mid-cast to straighten the rig before it lands. When fishing close in, an underarm swing is all you need and is much less likely to result in tangles.

Shotting for Avon Floats

Use the same basic shotting pattern for both standard and 'Topper' Avon Floats.

Start with the bulk (a string of BBS is more streamlined than a few AAs or SSGs) about 75cm (30in) from the hook with one or two intermediate and dropper shot.

As with most shotting patterns, however - perhaps even more so with these floats - it doesn't pay to be too rigid. The key to success is versatility and experimentation.

Say you're fishing a 'Topper' Float in a swim that's 'boiling' slightly.

You'll need to move the bulk right down to within 15-30cm (6-12in) of the hook, switching the intermediate and dropper shot to immediately above the bulk.

This forms a large but aerodynamic bunch of shot. If you think about it, all there is then between the float and a point very close to the hook is a length of thin, relatively taut line which is hardly affected by the turbulence at all.

"Master the basics of fishing Balsa Floats and Avon Floats and you are ready for bumper catches of fast-river fish!"